


stellar survivor

by discordiansamba



Series: desert born [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2020-01-31 13:25:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18592141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/discordiansamba/pseuds/discordiansamba
Summary: Sometimes, the choices you make are the wrong ones.(companion oneshot to desert born/desert raised, from Allura POV)





	stellar survivor

**Author's Note:**

> This took me a little longer to write than I thought it would! A combination of it fighting me in places and just general life chaos- we're getting out kitchen redone! It's very hard to focus on anything much less writing when you have old cabinets being ripped out and new ones put in right underneath you. Anyways, here is the previously promised Allura POV for the desert born/desert raised series! Please enjoy!!

Even within the Castle, she swore she could still smell the fire and smoke that engulfed its surroundings. She didn't even have to look outside to know, it was obvious to all.

Altea was burning.

The smell of smoke still clung to her even as the chill of the cryopod faded, leaving her momentarily puzzled. How had she gotten into a pod? The last thing she remembered, she had been with her father, and he'd- he'd...

_"If all goes well, we will see each other again soon."_

As she stumbled out of her pod, still disorientated from her long sleep, something told Allura that things hadn't gone as her father had planned. Something purple caught her eyes, and she realized with a shock that there was a Galra nearby. Though her muscles were still stiff from the cold, she acted on instinct, pinning the Galra to the ground.

It was only after she had done so, that she realized this Galra was no solider. He barely even looked old enough to qualify for military service.

"Keith!"

Allura jerked her head up, narrowing her eyes. She half expected to find more Galra, but instead found a race which she had never seen before. They nearly looked Altean, but none of them possessed markings, and their ears were ugly and round. Their pupils all shared one color in common- black, unlike the many colored pupils of her people. It was better than the alternative, but still provided her no comfort.

"You will tell me just who you are," Allura demanded slowly, making sure her hold on the squirming Galra was a bit more secure, grinding her knee deeper into his back, "-and why you have brought a Galra into _my_ castle."

One of them, the small one, who couldn't possibly be older than a child, stepped forward, glowering at her. "Let go of Keith!"

Allura narrowed her eyes, her gaze briefly flickering down towards the Galra. _Keith_ was not a name she was familiar with, and certainly didn't seem very Galra. That still didn't mean she trusted him, though- they had trusted the Galra before, and look where _that_ had gotten them. The entire galaxy at war, and for what? _Quintessence_?

She failed to see how it could possibly be worth the lives lost.

"I will do no such thing." Allura said firmly, though after a moment of consideration, she added, "-not until you answer my questions. Who are you people? Allies of the Galra?"

If they were, then she was severely outnumbered. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Coran emerge from the pod next to hers, quickly assessing the situation, with that careful eye that had earned him his spot as her father's trusted advisor. Still, Coran was old, and though his mind was still sharp, his strength was considerably lacking. She loved him dearly, but he wouldn't be of much use in a fight, not unarmed.

"Hold on," the tall one said, holding his hands up as if to placate her, "-I think there's been a misunderstanding. I promise you, we're not allies of the Galra Empire."

Allura narrowed her eyes. "And yet you have a Galra amongst your numbers."

"I'm not," the Galra's voice was raspy- a bit _too_ raspy, as if he were struggling to breathe properly, "-I'm not with the Empire."

She didn't believe him. They had heard much the same from the Galra who had slain her mother, that he wasn't with the Empire. That he was on _their_ side, working against Zarkon and his horrid ambitions. It had all proven to be a lie, but by the time anyone realized it, it was too late to stop him.

Still, she did at least slightly reduce the amount of pressure she'd applied to his back. It wouldn't do if he choked on his own breath, not before she got the chance to ask him some questions first. She needed to find out just how long she had been in the pod, and what fate had befallen her father and the rest of her people.

And Voltron- what of Voltron? If Zarkon got his hands on the black lion...

"Please, I'll explain everything, but let Keith go first." The tall one spoke again. For the first time, she really looked at him. There was a scar across the bridge of his nose that looked recent, and his arm... they had developed prosthetics on Altea, but nothing _this_ advanced. It looked almost as if it powered itself.

He also looked _desperate_. He kept looking towards the Galra she had pinned with what she recognized to be concern. He _cared_ for him, she realized. As did the small one- the other two only looked confused, and just a tad afraid, as if they didn't fully understand what was going on. But they were afraid of _her_ , she realized, not this... this _Keith_.

(What sort of name was _Keith_ anyways?)

"Princess," Coran's voice was soft, yet firm, "-I think you should listen to him."

Allura frowned. She was loathe to do so, but thus far no one had so much as made a move to attack. With no small amount of hesitation, she released the Galra, who wasted no time in getting as far away from her as he possibly could. She didn't miss the way he reached for the knife at his back, and she inwardly cursed herself for not having the forethought to disarm him while she had the chance. An armed Galra was even more dangerous than an unarmed one, even one this young.

Still, he made no move to actually unsheathe the knife. His hand simply hovered there, as if he were preparing to defend himself from another attack. She wanted to laugh at it, but she couldn't find the mirth with which to do so. The sound simply died in her throat.

"I have released him." She said. "Now answer me. Who are you? And why have you brought a Galra here with you?"

"My name is Takashi Shirogane." The scarred one introduced himself. Finally, another name to put with a face. "I come from a planet called Earth. We _all_ do. Now why don't you tell us who you are, so we can try to come to some sort of understanding?"

Earth? She'd never heard of it. She also didn't miss the way this _Takashi's_ gaze darted towards Keith as he said that. Clearly, he was from Earth too, however much he didn't look it. Was this _Earth_ yet another planet conquered by the Galra, then? Some kind of colony planet, perhaps. If that were true, why would this man be so concerned for the fate of one of his very oppressors?

Then again, she supposed this Keith _was_ a bit runty. Perhaps the other Galra wanted nothing to do with him- not that it made her pity him any.

"I am Princess Allura, of planet Altea." Allura introduced herself, not yet taking her eyes off of Keith. "And you _still_ have not answered my question."

"Weren't you listening?" The short one half asked, half demanded. "Keith's _from_ Earth. He's human, like the rest of us."

Allura blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the statement. He certainly didn't _look_ like the others. "I think I know a Galra when I see one."

"He could be a hybrid." Coran offered. "Bit short for a Galra."

In response, Keith gave Coran a curt nod of this head. He'd moved his hand away from his knife, instead folding both arms in front of his chest. "I'm half-human, on my father's side. Like Pidge said, I was born and raised on Earth. I'm _not_ with the empire."

He sounded rather insistent, but she wasn't sure if she believed him or not. Oh, she believed he was of mixed blood readily enough- it would explain his rather short stature. It was his claims that he wasn't with the Empire that she didn't trust. "So you say."

"Princess," Takashi cut in before their exchange could go any further, "-I promise you, Keith _isn't_ your enemy. He's the one who helped us find the blue lion. That's what brought us here."

Allura tensed, alarmed at his statement. How could she not? The last she'd heard of the blue lion, Blaytz still flew it. If the blue lion were here, then why wasn't he here with them?

"Why would _you_ have the blue lion?" Allura demanded. "What happened to its paladin?"

"Blaytz is dead." Keith told her. "He died ten thousand years ago, with the rest of the original paladins."

All at once, every ounce of fury in Allura's body vanished as if it had been sucked out of her. Died? Blaytz was dead? And not just him either, but- no, it _couldn't_ be. If the paladins were dead, then that meant that her father...

How could that- how could that be true? And for it to have been _ten thousand years_? No- that couldn't... this _had_ to be some sort of Galra trick, all of it. She could not have been asleep for ten thousand years. That just wasn't possible.

"That cannot- that cannot be right." Allura stammered. "How can you be so sure?"

"I'm not." Keith admitted. "All I know is what my mother told my father."

No. She didn't want to believe it. She _refused_ to believe it. Her father had to be alive- not only him, but all the other paladins as well. He... he had promised her. He'd promised her they would see each other again soon. He wouldn't... he wouldn't have lied to her like that, would he have?

 _Would_ he have?

"Coran," Allura slowly began, "-check to see if it is true."

For a tick, Coran didn't move, as if he were frozen to the spot with shock himself. Then slowly, he made his way to the podium, checking the Castle's logs for himself. She watched as he grew even paler, and she felt something sink like a heavy stone in her chest.

She realized it was her heart.

"Well?" Allura asked, fearing that she already knew the answer. "Is it true? Or is it just another Galra lie?"

"...I'm afraid it's true, princess." Coran looked back towards her, grief as deep as the seas in his eyes. "We've been asleep for ten thousand years. Altea... Altea is gone."

Shock was the only thing that kept her standing, freezing her in place. That couldn't... how could such a thing be possible? Altea, her home, her _people_... Everyone she knew, all gone in what was to her, the blink of an eye.

Ten thousand years.

Before she could be overcome by such unspeakable grief, she transformed it into something easier to deal with- _anger_. Clenching her fists, one face, and one face alone flashed through her mind- the one who was surely responsible for this all.

" _Zarkon_."

* * *

Altea might be gone, and with it, her father and the paladins, but there was still one hope left- they had not taken Voltron with them. The black lion still slept, securely locked away in the Castle, and now the blue lion was here, guided back to them by the lanky looking human whose name was Lance.

This, she knew, was a sign.

If the blue lion had brought them all here, then surely it had done so for a reason. She still didn't understand why it had felt the need to bring a Galra along, even one of mixed blood, but she supposed she could find _some_ use for him. He certainly couldn't be a paladin, she thought, as she guided the group to the bridge, always keeping Keith in her peripheral.

He made no move to do anything, but that still didn't mean she trusted him. She believed what Takashi- or _Shiro_ , rather- had told her, that he was half-human, and had been raised outside of the Galra Empire. That didn't mean he wouldn't turn on them as soon as he had the chance- though she had to admit, both Shiro and the small one, whose name she had learned was _Pidge_ , seemed to have a great deal of faith in him.

Faith that she simply couldn't understand. He was _Galra_ , for heaven's sake- even if this _Earth_ was supposedly a pre-contact planet, didn't they know what that meant? Shiro surely must have, since from the sound of it, the Galra had kept him as his prisoner for over a deca-phoeb. So how was it that he seemed to trust him so implicitly? Exactly what kind of relationship did they have?

She had a million such questions, in fact, but no time to dwell on them- not when there was a Galra battlecruiser headed in their direction. They would have to act quickly if they were to have any hope of reforming Voltron.

She would just have to keep an eye on Keith, she decided. Just to be safe.

Ascending the raised platform in the center of the bridge, Allura closed her eyes, drawing in a long breath. Holding out her hands, two pillars rose up at her command. Resting her hands on them, she felt a bit of their warmth seep into her, and drew strength from it. Altea and her people might be gone, but the Castle of Lions still remained, as did Coran.

Not all was lost. There was still hope.

Reaching out with her mind, she searched for the lion's energy signatures. She found those of the Black and Blue Lions automatically, seeing as they were already here on Arus, and Green came in the very next tick. Yellow remained more elusive, before it too, showed itself to her. But the red lion... something clouded her view of it. She had a general sense of it, but she could not find it, no matter how much effort she exerted. It was simply beyond her reach.

She felt a deep sense of unease at that. The red lion had been her father's lion, so for her to not be able to find it... she feared the worst. Her father might have hidden all the lions, but it _had_ been ten thousand years since then- Zarkon was bound to find at least one of them in that amount of time. But for it to be her father's...

Even worse, the quintessence she sensed from Keith seemed to sync up with that of the red lion's. But that was impossible. The Galra had killed her father- how could one of them be a paladin? How could _any_ Galra, even one of mixed blood, be a paladin again, after what the last one had done? And of the red lion, no less! Even if she let herself believe that Keith was someone she could trust, the thought of him piloting her father's lion... there _had_ to be some sort of mistake. There must be.

So when it came time to tell them of the red lion, she lied. There was no paladin for the red lion, she claimed. But lying about it only made it more apparent that it had to be true- for she could taste the lie as soon as it left her lips, an awful, sour taste that refused to leave her mouth.

Still, she persisted. She didn't want to believe it. She couldn't accept it.

Why not _her_? The red lion had been her father's lion. Surely she could fly it just as well as he once had.

Even worse, somehow Keith _knew_ that she was lying, she sensed. He said nothing against it, gritting his teeth and looking away in resigned acceptance. Somehow that only made it worse. She would have rather had him scream at her, to shout out that it was his right to pilot the red lion- so that she could coldly rebuke him, and remind him of his place in all this. The lions had been created by Altean alchemy, by her father. How dare he act like he had any claim to them, after what his people had done?

But he didn't. He just accepted it.

And that... that just made her feel like she'd done something terrible. She hadn't, she told herself. She had only acted to protect her father's legacy, that was all. Besides, it had to be some sort of mistake- maybe... maybe something was off, in the way she couldn't pinpoint exactly where the red lion was.

(It wasn't true. She knew it. She kept lying to herself anyways.)

She looked away from him, even when Shiro turned to speak to him. She tried not to listen, but she did anyways, if only to try and puzzle out the mystery behind their strange relationship. Shiro's tone was soft yet supportive, and it was transparently obvious that Keith looked up to him a great deal, which only furthered the mystery.

Those thoughts were still on her mind well after Keith had left, heading with Pidge to recover the green lion. She'd wanted to say something against it, but she instead held her tongue. If Keith _were_ to betray them, now would be the time. She would feel sorry for Pidge if that turned out to be the case, but she felt confident that the green lion would protect her new paladin.

She'd always done so for Trigel.

No sooner had their pod left, did Shiro turn to face her. "We need to talk."

Allura simply huffed, making a show of tinkering with the Castle's systems. "I do not know what there is to talk about."

She had expected something like this, but even so, she was surprised by just how protective he sounded. In a way, it reminded her of her father. Thinking about him just made her heart hurt, and she quickly forced the feeling away, not ready to deal with it just yet.

"Yes, you do." Shiro challenged. "You said there was no paladin for the red lion, but I saw the way you looked at Keith."

She narrowed her eyes, grateful that her back was turned. She had been so focused on Keith, that she hadn't stopped to watch anyone's else reaction, but clearly, Shiro was more perceptive than she had thought. In a way, she supposed that was a good thing- if he was to be the new black paladin, he would need to be.

Still, right now she wished he were a little _less_ so.

In truth, she knew what she was doing was wrong. She could hardly be picky, not when they so clearly needed Voltron. And yet... she just couldn't. The red lion was all she had left of her father. How could she just... _give it away_?

"My _father_ was the original paladin of the red lion." Allura said, finally turning to face him. "I am not about to let some Galra fly it."

"From what I saw with Lance and the blue lion, I don't think that's your choice, princess." Shiro stated flatly, the sheer frankness of his words causing her to bristle- especially since she knew full well he was completely right. That _wasn't_ how the lions worked.

"I know you have every reason to hate the Galra." Shiro continued- and she nearly wanted to scoff. The Galra had betrayed them in mass, had massacred her people. Of course she did. "But Keith was raised on Earth. He's just as human as the rest of us."

Allura simply narrowed her eyes, unconvinced. "How can you be so sure? For all you know, he could be lying to you."

"Because," Shiro locked eyes with her, "-I raised him."

Oh. She had to admit, she wasn't quite sure what she expected their relationship to be, but she hadn't... she hadn't thought they were _family_. In hindsight, it seemed to explain so much- the soft touches on the shoulder, the way they spoke to one another, how Shiro had encouraged Keith when he had expressed his doubts. She idly wondered if they were actually related, connected by blood on his human side, before she decided it likely didn't matter.

She thought of Coran as family, yet the man shared no blood ties with her at all.

"Princess," Coran began, and she felt her heart lighten- surely Coran would agree with her, "-I think you should give the lad a chance."

Pivoting on her heel, Allura stared at Coran in horror. He couldn't have suggested what she thought he had. She must have misheard him.

"How can you even say that, Coran?" Allura asked. "You know how much my father trusted Zarkon, and yet he, and countless others we thought our allies, still betrayed him- betrayed _us_. The Galra are _not_ to be trusted."

"That may be so," Coran softly said, "-but the boy isn't Zarkon."

Clenching her fists, Allura tore her gaze away from Coran. She barely even heard what Shiro had to say, too caught up in the fact that not even _Coran_ agreed with her.

Even worse, she knew he was right.

He _wasn't_ Zarkon. His appearance aside, he was barely even Galra. Keith had been raised on Earth, by Shiro, by _humans_ \- so she supposed that made him just as human as his name would suggest. He'd even kept the blue lion safe all these deca-phoebs, leading not only its own paladin to it, but the rest of the new paladins as well.

She shut her eyes, trying to calm herself. Part of her still rebelled against the idea, but... Coran was right. _Shiro_ was right. She was letting her grief and anger cloud her judgement, allowing it to blind her.

But how couldn't she? Altea... to her, it had only been yesterday that it was still thriving, even if its people were at war. The paladins of old, her father... they were all still alive. And now everyone and everything she had once known were gone.

Well, not _everything_ , she supposed. The Castle of Lions was still here. Voltron was still here. And not every _one_ either. There was Coran- and the mice, she supposed. She wondered if it was her father who had put them in there, or if they had snuck in on their own. It didn't really matter, she supposed- she was simply glad they were there.

She just... she wished there was _more_.

Realizing that Shiro was still waiting for an answer, Allura opened her eyes, holding her head high. "Fine. But just to be clear, I do not like this."

She didn't. She wasn't sure if she ever would. But right now, reforming Voltron was more important than her feelings, no matter how deeply they ran. Altea was gone. She couldn't change that. But she would not let that fate befall any other planets, not when she- when _they_ could stop it.

And to that end, they needed Voltron. The _universe_ needed Voltron. And for that, they would need all five paladins- no matter what she personally thought of them.

She just wished that she could be one of them.

* * *

In the chaos that followed, there was very little time to stop and think. Coran's initial estimate that the Galra cruiser would not arrive for another couple of quintants had proven incorrect- the cruiser had in fact arrived within a few vargas.

In a sense, it had been a stroke of luck- because onboard that cruiser was the red lion.

Seeing Keith wearing the red paladin armor had been... painful, even if she had been the one to give it to him. Her father had never worn this set, but it still didn't feel right to her. Handing him her father's bayard had felt even less right, and the fact that he had so readily transformed it into a sword... even if its shape wasn't that of an Altean broadsword, the similarity had been enough to force her to look away. She didn't want to admit that her father could possibly have anything in common with this _Galra_. She could only imagine what he would have thought- his lion, in the hands of someone with the blood of the enemy.

But sure enough, not only did he find the red lion, but he flew it too. Together, he and the new paladins had managed to form Voltron- more out of sheer desperation than anything else. The threat they faced from Sendak had abated, and now they could focus on getting the Castle ready to leave Arus, in order to escape further pursuers from the Galra.

The entire time, Keith had done nothing she found to be untrustworthy. She had begrudgingly accepted the fact that perhaps he was. But just because she could trust him, didn't mean she had to _like_ him, she resolved.

And yet... she still found herself outside the holodeck, even when she knew she should be working on repairs. The paladins had all gone to sleep- they deserved a long rest, after how stressful today had been. She suspected that a number of them were still awake, but they were not her concern at the moment. It was more than just the particle barrier and the lion sensors- ten thousand years of disuse had clearly taken a toll on the Castle. It was desperately in need of repair.

That's what she told herself, as she slipped inside the holodeck. She was just checking its functions, that was all. They might need it for paladin training. It had nothing to do with the fact that her father's AI was stored inside, a fact which had been revealed to her by Coran. Seeing her father in that state... she had felt so conflicted. Part of her was relieved that he was still with her in some way, but the rest of her... seeing it only confirmed what she already knew- that her father was gone, and wouldn't be coming back.

In spite of everything she told herself, the first thing she did was access her father's AI. She watched as a field of juniberries blossomed around her feet, an impossible scene now that Altea was gone. She could only pray that they still existed somewhere in the vast universe, but something made her doubt it. Zarkon likely would have wiped out every trace of Altea- even something as innocuous as a flower would be too much.

"Allura," her father's voice was still as warm as she remembered it, even if it was now tempered by a crackle of static, produced by a machine, "-is something wrong?"

"I-" Allura began, only to realize she didn't know what to say. She hadn't _meant_ to come here.

"We did it, father." Allura finally told him. "We found all the lions, and even formed Voltron. I wish you could have seen it."

Her father's smile was tempered by knowledge, and an understanding that this was not what had drawn her back to his chamber. "Tell me what truly troubles you, daughter."

Where could she even begin? The question was so vast, that she felt like she would get lost in it if she dwelled on it for too long. So instead, she simply blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"The red lion's new paladin is Galra."

There was a long pause, as her father simply looked at him, his hologram flickering every now and again. Then finally, he closed his eyes with a sigh, and said, "-I know."

Allura snapped her head up, her eyes wide with shock. "You know? How could you possibly-"

"I am connected to the Castle." Alfor told her. "What it knows, I know."

"Oh." Allura frowned, suddenly feeling even more uncertain of herself. She wondered if her father had seen her lie about the red paladin, and what he thought of it. "Coran says he's no Zarkon, but I... I don't know if I can make myself believe that. I know we need all five paladins in order to form Voltron, but..."

"I understand." Alfor said. "You were raised in volatile times. Trust is no longer something that comes easily to you."

"Some part of me knows that I'm being unreasonable." Allura admitted. "But I just... of all the lions, why did it have to be _yours_?"

"You know was well as I just how capricious the red lion can be." Alfor said with a smile- and she felt the edge of one tug at her lips too.

"I do." Allura said. She knew all too well, all of the red lion's past antics still fresh and vivid in her memory. "And I- I want to trust its choice, but how can I? The Galra, they took mother, took our home, took _you_."

"So they did." Alfor acknowledged. "But this new paladin didn't."

There it was, plain and simple. She knew her father was right- that Keith didn't have any involvement in anything the Galra had done. He had been raised as far away from them as possible, in a time where Altea was just a distant memory to most, if any remembered it at all. She couldn't hold him accountable for actions taken ten thousand years before his birth.

"I know." Allura finally admitted. "I know that he is not to blame for the Galra's actions, but when I see him, all I can think of is the Galra that killed mother."

Alfor merely sighed. "It is understandable. But you must remember Allura- there were Galra who sided with Altea too."

Allura looked up at him, blinking. Thinking back on it, she realized that he was right. Their numbers had been few, but they had remained loyal throughout the war. Crinkling her brow, she wondered why she had forgotten them so easily, only to quickly realize the answer for herself.

It was simply easier to hate, and hate universally, than dare to trust again after that trust had been shattered. When she awoke and heard that Altea had been destroyed, she'd likely blocked the memories from her mind, sealed away where they couldn't get in the way of her singular focus.

It might have actually taken, had it not been for Keith.

"I remember now." Allura said. "I was so focused on hating the Galra, that I almost forgot."

"Do not forget again, daughter." Alfor gently advised her. "Zarkon may have captured the hearts of most of people, but not all of them."

"What happened to them?" Allura asked. "Those who stood with us?"

Alfor shook his head. "They were destroyed along with Altea. I had them send their children away in hopes that some pocket of resistance could survive, but after that... I do not know."

Allura felt her shoulders slump, but at the same time, she couldn't help but wonder if the resistance that Keith's mother was supposedly a part of had been born from those survivors. It was a heartening thought, but at the same time, it brought with it a sharp realization. In her anger, she may have already burned what bridges she had with Keith.

"I fear that I have already sabotaged any possible relationship we could have." Allura admitted.

"Have you tried speaking with the boy?" Alfor inquired.

Her father or not, Allura bristled a bit at the implication. "Of course, I-"

"Alone." Alfor finished. "Preferably without a knee pressed to his back."

Allura's mouth snapped shut, and she found herself simply staring at her feet, as if she were a chastised little girl rather than someone on the cusp of womanhood. She certainly _felt_ like one. She _did_ feel at least somewhat bad for how she had first reacted, but how was she to know? The last thing she'd been aware of was that Zarkon's fleet was preparing to touch down, his soldiers preparing to invade. It wasn't an unreasonable assumption to make.

"No." Allura finally admitted. "I haven't."

"Perhaps you should." Alfor told her.

Allura frowned, looking up at him. "I- I'm not sure. He may not want to talk to me."

To that, her father merely gave her a reassuring smile. She wished that he could reach out, to rest a reassuring hand on her shoulder like he had always done- but she knew that it couldn't be. He was nothing more than a hologram now- no matter how advanced, she would never _truly_ be able to touch him.

"Perhaps not." Alfor admitted. "But you should still try."

Dropping her gaze, Allura fixed it on the juniberries by her feet. They too, were nothing more than an illusion. She wondered how long it would take for their scent to fade from her memory completely. Right now she could still recall it, fresh and vivid as if it were just yesterday- and in reality, she knew it was.

At least, it was to her.

"You are right." Allura admitted, finally looking up at her father. "But then, you always were."

Alfor smiled at her sadly. "I only wish that were so."

Allura swallowed, looking away. Hologram or not, there was so much guilt on her father's face that she couldn't bear to look at it. None of this was her father's fault, she knew- it was Zarkon's. _Zarkon_ had been the one to deceive her father, and Zarkon had been the one who had started this war. He'd even sped along his own planet's destruction in order to gain more power, and by opening the rift up further, had heralded its end.

All her father had done was trust him.

"I should... I should go." Allura said slowly. "There is still much work to be done."

For a tick, her father said nothing, then simply nodded. "I will be here when you need me."

Looking up at him again, she gave him a sad smile of her own. "I know."

* * *

For all that she had resolved to speak to Keith, it took nearly a full quintant for her to find a chance. She hadn't wanted to intrude into his quarters late at night, much as this was her ship. That didn't exactly sound like it would lend itself much to conversation, and the last thing she wanted to do was make him feel as if he were cornered.

She would approach him in public, she decided. That way he could turn her down if he really wanted to- since she doubted that the pressure would be on him, but rather on her. While Lance and Hunk appeared rather neutral on the whole subject, Shiro and Pidge had made their allegiances well-known- Pidge especially.

Her remarks at lunch had been... rather cutting, if she had to be honest. But at least they had lead to the desired result of the paladins finally working together as one, though she had to admit, she hadn't expected a _food fight_ of all things to be what did it. Her mother would have scolded her for sure if she'd known.

She also reasoned that being able to connect with his fellow paladins would have likely put Keith in a better mood, and perhaps make him more amiable to talking. She still didn't quite have a firm grip on his personality- or _any_ of their personalities, really- but he seemed... _quiet_ , at least when Shiro and Pidge weren't around.

So just before he could leave the lounge, Allura gathered all her courage, and called out to him. "Keith? Might I have a word?"

Keith froze, his hair almost standing on end- or was it fur? There _were_ some Galra with hair, though black was a rather unusual color for it. Perhaps it had come from his human father.

"Uh..." Keith trailed off, hesitantly looking back towards her.

Almost instantly, he was flanked by Pidge and Shiro, the former standing protectively in front of him with her arms spread as if she expected her to physically assault him. Which... she supposed was not entirely unfair, given how their initial meeting had gone.

Still, she couldn't help but huff. All she wanted to do with talk.

Shiro's reaction, in comparison, was far more measured. He simply hovered behind Keith, placing a hand on his shoulder- and for a tick, she nearly gave in to the brief feeling of envy that reared up from deep within her. How was it that _he_ got to experience the reassuring touch of a loved one, while her father had been reduced to a mere hologram? It didn't seem _fair_.

She banished it as quickly as it came.

"Anything you want to say to Keith, you can say to us." Pidge challenged, narrowing her eyes.

Allura opened her mouth to say something to that. "I-"

"It's okay, Pidge."

She snapped her mouth shut, staring at Keith in surprise. He was looking directly at her, violet pupils set in yellow sclera. She shuddered, but didn't look away.

"Are you sure, Keith?" Shiro asked. "You don't have to-"

"I'm sure." Keith said, before breaking his gaze, looking gratefully up towards Shiro. "But thanks."

Shiro held it for a moment, before heaving a sigh. "If you insist. Guess I'll just focus on putting Pidge here to bed."

She barely heard what Pidge said to that- something about not having a bedtime. It didn't matter, since it got them both out of the room. Keith tensed a little as the door shut behind them, before he just as quickly relaxed, letting out a held breath. Resolved though she might have been to have this conversation, they simply stood there in awkward silence for the next few doboshes. She had prepared a whole speech, but it suddenly fled from her mind.

"I'm sorry," Keith said suddenly, "-about your father."

Allura blinked. She hadn't expected him to start talking first. "O-oh. Thank you."

What felt like several more doboshes of awkward silence passed before Keith shifted on his feet. She felt herself flinch, and automatically, he froze. "I wasn't-"

"I know." Allura said hurriedly.

He didn't seem to relax at her reassurance, not that she could blame him. Now that she was actually alone with him, she realized just how _young_ he actually was. He couldn't possibly be any older than herself, if not just a bit younger. For all that he had held her gaze at first, it now kept drifting towards his feet- as did her own, if she was going to be perfectly honest.

"I know," he spoke again, his voice quiet enough that it could have been a whisper, "-I know how it feels."

Allura looked up, looking at him as if for the first time. Realization dawned across her features, as something suddenly clicked into place. "Your father...?"

Keith shook his head. "He fell one day while out in the desert. He- he didn't make it."

Allura felt her heart drop. Shiro had said that he'd raised him, but she hadn't thought... though in hindsight, she didn't know what else that statement could have possibly meant. It clearly had to have happened when Keith was very young, and in that instant, any lingering jealously that she had towards him vanished.

At least she had her father growing up.

"I'm sorry," Allura said, unintentionally repeating what Keith had said earlier, "-about your father."

Keith nodded, shifting on his feet again. This time she didn't flinch.

"Look," he began, "-I know how you feel about the Galra. I understand if you're not comfortable about having me around, but I swear that I won't betray you. My mother ended up on Earth because she wanted to keep the blue lion hidden from the rest of the Empire- to protect it. And I..."

"...I want to live up to that."

"I know what that's like." Allura said, without thinking. "For a long time, my father was my dream. I wanted to be just like him."

To her surprise, Keith actually _smiled_ at that. His fangs were clearly bared, but for the first time, she felt as if she could truly see the human behind the Galra's skin. "Yeah. Me too."

Oh, Allura realized, she'd been a fool. She'd been so angry, that she hadn't even stopped to notice just how much they had in common.

"What was he like?" Allura asked. "Your father, I mean."

"He was a pilot." Keith told her. "He worked for uh... the Galaxy Garrison. It's a space exploration program. Shiro and M- Pidge's family, they both worked for it too."

"My father was many things to many people." Allura told him. "King, alchemist, swordsman, paladin... but to me, he was always just my father."

"He flew the red lion, didn't he?" Keith asked.

This time, she didn't break eye contact. "Yes."

Keith's gaze dropped, a slight frown touching his lips. "I didn't mean- I didn't mean to take it away from you. I know how important it must be to you."

"It is." Allura admitted. "But the red lion would not choose someone it did not think was worthy. It can be very particular about who it chooses to be its paladin. So if it saw something in you, then I suppose I just have to trust it."

"Even though I'm Galra?" Keith asked, sounding unconvinced.

"I suppose I will have to get used to it." Allura said. "Though perhaps you should avoid say... sneaking up on me in any darkened chambers, at least for a little while."

That actually earned her a snort, and to her surprise, she was almost delighted to hear it. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind. I think I still have a bruise from yesterday."

"Oh," Allura flushed, suddenly feeling overwhelmingly guilty, "-yes, sorry about that. I thought-"

Keith shook his head. "I mean, I wasn't wild about being pinned down, but I get it. I spent _years_ preparing for what I would do if the Galra ever came back to Earth, so I probably would have done the same thing."

"Still, I should apologize." Allura said firmly. "I misjudged you."

Keith just shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time."

Somehow, she instinctively knew that he was lying. She nearly wanted to challenge it, but instead decided to simply accept his lie. It was being told out of kindness, even though she wasn't quite sure she deserved it, not after how she had treated him. It was certainly telling of his character, though. Truth be told, it only managed to make her feel even _worse_ \- but that was her own issue to overcome, not Keith's.

"Well," Allura instead said, "-I can assure you, it will not happen again."

"That's nice to know." Keith said. "So, uh... is there anything else?"

"Oh." Allura blinked, before shaking her head. "No. That's all."

Keith nodded, slowly taking a step backwards. "I should- I should probably go, then. It's been a long day."

"Of course." Allura said. "You should rest, especially since you will all be up early tomorrow to continue your training."

"Right." Keith bit back a groan. "Training."

"You didn't really think that one day of training would be all that was necessary to become a paladin of Voltron, did you?" Allura asked, arching her brows. "Certainly not with how you use your bayard."

Keith bristled at the remark, narrowing his eyes. "What's _wrong_ with the way I use my bayard?"

"You wield it like a knife." Allura complained.

He had clearly never been trained. Self-taught, maybe, but that was hardly the same thing as formal training. While he certainly possessed the ferocity and the singular focus of many a Galra warrior, he had none of the technical skill- or almost none, at any rate. What skill he did have was clearly meant for things other than fighting- hunting, maybe, or protecting himself from wild animals.

Unfortunately, lack of training seemed to do nothing to stop him from running headlong into a fight. Without training, he'd only get himself killed. He would perhaps die a little slower than the other paladins- Shiro not withstanding- but he was still most definitely die.

Keith opened his mouth to retort, but quickly snapped it shut. "Knives are what I'm used to."

"And that," Allura said, "-is exactly what training is for. If you are going to be a paladin, then knowing how to fight is essential."

Keith grumbled underneath his breath, muttering something she couldn't quite catch. "Fine. Guess you're right."

Allura smiled at that. "I am glad you understand."

Perhaps she could even dig out some of the old combat routines that Zarkon had once used. If they were going to have a Galra aboard the ship, they might as well use him to his full potential.

"In that case, I really should get some sleep." Keith told her, turning on his heel. She didn't miss the fact that he still kept a wary eye on her- apparently she was not the only one who knew that reconciling their difference was not going to be as simple as either of them made it sound.

"Please," Allura said, "-do not let me hold you up any longer."

Keith slowly nodded, edging towards the door. He paused just in front of it, chancing a glance behind her. "Do you... do you want to see it sometime? The red lion, I mean."

Allura blinked, not expecting the question. Then slowly, a smile crossed her lips. "I would love to."

Keith faintly returned her smile, before he ducked back out into the hall. She was not entirely surprised to find that Pidge and Shiro were waiting for him outside. The former greeted him, affectionately ruffling his hair, while the latter squinted at her suspiciously until Keith assuaged whatever fears she held.

Shiro caught her eye, his smile the last thing she saw before the door shut behind Keith. Once it did, her shoulders slumped, long held tension being released as she exhaled.

That certainly could have gone worse. If anything, she would say it had gone rather well. Slumping down on the couch in a rather un-princess-like fashion, she let herself wonder for a moment if she was really doing the right thing by trying to make amends. What if...?

Allura shook her head, pushing herself to her feet. No. She couldn't let herself get caught up in what _could_ be. The red lion- her _father's_ lion- had chosen Keith. She would just have to believe in it's choice. She had told her father she would, and she didn't intend to back down on that promise. That was not how she did things.

But the black lion had also once chosen _Zarkon_ , a particularly nasty part of her whispered. Who was to say this new Galra paladin wouldn't turn out exactly like him?

As much as she wished she could resolutely shut it down, she didn't have an answer to that. She didn't know. She wished she did. Having spoken with him, it didn't seem as if Keith would go down that path. But then... she had never expected Zarkon to betray them either. Not in life- and not in whatever he had become after his death.

Bringing up the distress calls the Castle had received over the past ten thousand years with a wave of her hand, Allura's mouth set itself in a tight frown. For a long time, she simply sat there, listening to them play out, a cacophony of noise of screams in hundreds of different languages, some she knew, and others she didn't.

Nearly every one of them mentioned the Galra.

A monster, Allura decided. That was what Zarkon had become.

She closed out all the distress calls, trying very hard not to think of the times before the war. She would try and get along and work with Keith, and possibly even the resistance that his mother worked for, should they ever find them.

But Zarkon... Zarkon she would never forgive.

 _Never_.


End file.
